Air Fryer Christmas Cake. Introducing you to a last minute Christmas cake recipe made in the air fryer using a quality Christmas cake mix.
Also known as an air fryer fruit cake, it is perfect for if you didn’t plan ahead in time and want a last minute Christmas cake that you can ice, that doesn’t need soaking for months.
Last Minute Christmas Cake
As a kid I don’t think I saw anyone make a homemade Christmas cake. What I do remember is my mum going to collect one that a family friend made for us each Christmas.
I was told (at the time) that to make a homemade Christmas cake, took months of planning and must be made by a certain date or it would never work.
That you need to soak the fruit in brandy and let is sit before you can even think about transforming it into a cake.
That was when I was about 8 years old, and I was always fascinated with them and wondered if there was an option for a last minute Christmas cake.
There was of course, and that last minute Christmas cake was buying one from the supermarket!!!
But today, what I have managed to do was get a Christmas cake mix, which I am told can be done as a last minute xmas cake and have decided to see if it is possible, less than 6 weeks before Christmas.
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Christmas Cake Mix
The story began when I walked into what has become my favourite shop since I have moved back to England.
That is The Refill Jar in Beverley. It’s the place to go if you want many dried herbs, spices, beans, lentils, flours, rice etc. They even make soap, and you can fill up your beer whilst you are in the shop.
But what got my attention is something I saw at the tills, and this was a Christmas cake mix in a box.
I was assured it can easily be done quickly and can very much be your last minute option.
I took the box home and was fascinated to see inside it:
- Ingredients weighed out
- Full recipe instructions
It was like the quality version of a box cake mix. Not like the air fryer box cake or the instant pot box cake we had shared with you before.
But using the best of the best ingredients, that you know, will produce the best Christmas cake.
I was keen to see how it would work out and if it was something that I could do in the air fryer.
I know many of our air fryer readers are looking for an easy option and I can’t believe how amazing this is.
Nut Free Christmas Cake
Now this is something else that I want to mention. Our son has a nut allergy and all the recipes on Recipe This are nut free.
But of course, nuts are common in a Christmas cake.
There are often almonds, sometimes other nuts and I wanted to keep with a nut free cake.
I asked the shop owners, and they kindly swapped the ground almond in the recipe for ground rice for me and boxed it up as a nut free Christmas cake, isn’t that special?
Can You Bake Cake In An Air Fryer?
Yes, you can. But note, you must go with a lower temperature and then cook it for longer. That is because it will burn on the top otherwise.
After 10 years of baking cakes in the air fryer, I have found that the ideal temperature is 170c/340f and then after your cook time and it is not quite done in the middle, to then go down to 160c/320f.
Though it depends on how big your cake is. This Christmas cake was rather big compared to when I make an air fryer chocolate cake.
Christmas Cake In Air Fryer
A Christmas cake cooked in the air fryer is ridiculously easy and I prefer it over the oven.
You just need something good, that is easy for you to remove the Christmas cake from.
I recommend a silicone cake pan. These are a genius because they don’t leave the cake stook to the bottom of the pan and perfectly fit one full Christmas cake into it.
I also love how cheap they are to buy too. Check these ones out, if you have not invested in silicone yet.
When Should You Make A Christmas Cake?
The perfect housewife next door, with the perfect looking house, and the perfect ironed clothes, will tell you that you should have it on by September.
And OMG how many of us, have a zillion things to do and September is long gone???
Thankfully this amazing Christmas cake mix, can be done as late as the week before Christmas.
And I know this because I am enjoying eating it and it tastes the business and has not been soaked for months.
Air Fryer Christmas Cake Recipe Ingredients
The ingredients that came in our box, all weighed and measured included:
- Caster Sugar
- Golden Syrup
- Ground Rice
- Plain Flour
- Baking Powder
- Currants
- Raisins
- Sultanas
- Glace Cherries
- Brandy
Then all I needed to supply that was extra and needed adding was the butter and the eggs. I needed four large eggs and 225g of butter.
So rather simple and if you notice, what was included, was all the pantry items that would last until someone bought the Christmas cake kit and took it home with them.
Then for the kitchen gadgets that we have used in this quick Christmas cake recipe it has just been our Philips Air Fryer XL. We have this one and its wonderful for many types of air fryer baking.
How To Cook Christmas Cake In Air Fryer?
- Mix. Load the ingredients into a mixing bowl and mix well. Gradually adding in the ingredients until you have everything, but the dried fruit and brandy left to use. You can use a hand mixer for this, and it will really speed up your production.
- Fork. Next its time to add in all the dried fruit and the cherries. I recommend using a fork for mixing the fruit into the cake batter, as it can get really thick and hard to do otherwise.
- Cook. Load your Christmas cake batter into your silicone baking pan and then place into the air fryer. Cook for 50 minutes or until it is fully cooked in the centre.
- Beeps. When the air fryer beeps, remove the Christmas cake from the silicone and pour over the brandy. Then allow it to rest for 6 hours, before either covering in icing or tucking in.
When Do You Put Brandy In Christmas Cake?
There are two different times you can add brandy to a Christmas cake and it depends what you want to achieve from it.
The old school, classic way, would be to soak the fruit in the brandy and leave it to soak for a couple of months.
But the alternative Christmas cake is to add the brandy over the just cooked Christmas cake. Which is ideal for when you are in a rush and are doing a last minute one.
Though, I am always honest with you and I do have a confession to make…. I like totally forgot about the brandy. And I really thought it tasted good without. I then did a slice with and a slice without brandy and didn’t really feel like one tasted better than the other.
How Long Do You Cook A Cake In Air Fryer?
The cook time for a cake in the air fryer can vary from 30 minutes to an hour. This depends on the type of cake you are cooking and its density.
For example, our air fryer cheesecake is easily done in 30 minutes, yet to make a Christmas cake is much longer.
Plus, some cakes such as this Christmas cake, need to cook low to not burn on top and cook through and this can slow down the cook time.
Christmas Cake & Cheese
If you are British and enjoying a British Christmas cake, chances are you are having Christmas cake with cheese.
I always remember my dad having his Christmas cake with some Cheshire cheese, though my thing is always the wensleydale.
We will be heading to the factory shop that does the wensleydale this weekend and I plan to buy lots that I can save for Christmas and serve together.
Can You Freeze Christmas Cake?
Yes, you can freeze Christmas cake. Christmas cake tastes just as good when you defrost it from frozen, then it does when you store a Christmas cake in your pantry.
Though allow it to fully defrost before tucking in and don’t forget the cheese!
How To Store Christmas Cake?
I love to use a big cake tin and then keep my Christmas cake in a cold pantry, kitchen cupboard, utility, garage etc.
Anywhere that will allow it to last as long as possible.
Though I love Christmas cake, so mine never lasts long!
Listen To Air Fryer Christmas Cake
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More Air Fryer Cake Recipe Ideas
- Air Fryer Sponge Cake
- Air Fryer Carrot Cake
- Air Fryer Jammie Dodger Cake
- Air Fryer Giant Doughnut Cake
Air Fryer Christmas Cake
Ingredients
Kitchen Gadgets:
- Air Fryer
- Hand Mixer
- 7 Inch Silicone Cake Tin
Air Fryer Christmas Cake Ingredients:
- 225 g Butter
- 225 g Caster Sugar
- 1 Tbsp Golden Syrup
- 4 Large Eggs
- 56 g Ground Rice
- 255 g Plain Flour
- ¼ Tsp Baking Powder
- 454 g Currants
- 114 g Raisins
- 114 g Sultanas
- 56 g Glace Cherries
- 50 ml Brandy optional
Instructions
- Place butter and sugar into a mixing bowl and using a hand mixer, mix until they are nice and creamy.
- Add in eggs, golden syrup and then slowly mix with the hand mixer until well mixed together.
- Add in the baking powder, ground rice and half of the flour. Mix slowly so that the wet ingredients are well coated in the dry ingredients. Then slowly, add the rest of the flour a bit at a time.
- Put the hand mixer to one side and use a fork to scrape the edges.
- Bit by bit and using a fork to mix with, add in all the dried fruit and the cherries. As you add more and more in, it will become harder to mix, but stick with it, until all the add ins are mixed well.
- Load the Christmas cake mix into a silicone baking mould that is either 6 inches or 7 inches (depending on the size of your air fryer) and then place the silicone mould into the air fryer basket.
- Air fry for 150c/300f for 40 minutes, followed by 10 minutes at 160c/320f. Remove from the silicone and place on a clean chopping board. Then coat in brandy and leave overnight if you can.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Can’t make it now? Then pin it for later!
Can you use an oblong load tin instead?
Cooking gor 40min @ 150, then 10min @ 160 left the mix cooker on top but uncooked inside. Silicon cake tin was tight fit in air fryer, could that be the problem ?.
Turned top upside down in another tin, left soft Center in silicon tin and put both into oven. Should get something to eat with custard, does taste lovely.
Hi keith,
Yes if it is a very tight fit this can be a problem as the air gets restricted movement around the food, this is what makes air fryers so great a good flow of air. Half the problem is the many different air fryers and the many different silicone tins that are on the market, so we link to the ones that fit in the air fryer we use 🙂
Is this on bake setting or Airfryer setting?
Hi Pam
The air fryers we use only have a air fryer setting 😊
I am about to try this recipe, should I use just the air fryer, or the bake mode
Hi Linda,
Sorry for the late reply, we would always use the air fry option as this is how we cooked it in our air fryer which do not give any option, just air fry and that is it 🙂
Hi Samantha , I was wondering if you used a deep pan cake tin when air frying the Christmas cake or was it a sandwich cake tin you’d use for a sponge … ?
Manda x
Hi Manda,
We used a silicone cake mould 7 inch which are readily available on Amazon and as you see in the recipe it fitted perfect in our air fryer which was the Philips XL 🙂
Hi Samantha,
My air fryer’s lowest temperature is 180c. Is it still possible to use this for the cake?
What timing would you recommend?
Steve
Hi Steve,
I would say it is going to be hard as the air fryer cooks from the top and relies on good circulation around the food to cook it evenly. So if you only have 180c as the lowest you could try a few things. Stick to the same times we have in our recipe and place grease proof paper over the cake and tuck it in so it will not get sucked up on to the element of your air fryer and something else which is not for the faint hearted after cooking it half way try and tip it into another cooking tray if you have one and cook it on the other side.
Sorry for the long answer but when a manufacturer only does certain temperatures if really does limit what you can cook in an air fryer, hope these can help you make your christmas cake 🙂
I just made this in my Ninja Dual Zone air fryer and it turned out amazing. So easy to follow. Will be making this again next year!
Cani ask what temp you used and for how long
How long can you keep this cake for?
Hi Sara,
I would say keep it for 6 months depending on the conditions it is kept in 🙂
Hi Eve I’ve just purchased a ninja dual air fryer and I want to try this recipe in it. I read your comment could you tell me what temperature you baked the cake on and for what length of time please. Thanks Bev
Never knew it would cook so well in the air fryer. Ours was so delicious and your recipe was so easy to follow.
I love Christmas cake and wondered if you could make this in an air fryer. It was delicious and i made another one to keep for Christmas, thanks.